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headsetDid you know that you can enjoy audio materials without checking out a physical product such as an audiotape or CD? The walls of many libraries are becoming transparent as they explore ways to bring remote collections to teachers, students, and other library patrons. From music to famous speeches, the Internet brings the world of audio into the information center.

The term "digital audio" means that sounds are represented in the form of numbers that an electronic device can read. Digital audio can be shared through media such as CDs and DVDs, but it can also be shared over networks such as the Internet. Many formats are used to store the files including MP3.

Accessing Remote Collections

In addition to the audio you hear through traditional broadcasts such as radios, there are two other ways to access remote digital audio collections. They can be downloaded or streamed. In some cases the end user can choose which method they prefer. In others, only one option is available.

Downloaded audio is copied from a remote web server onto a computer hard drive, MP3 player, CD, DVD, or other storage device. Although many types of files can be downloaded including .au, .wav., and .midi, the MP3 format is by far the most popular for music files. High quality and small file size are two of the reasons. Downloaded audio files can be placed on portable devices such as PDAs, iPods, and MP3 players.

Streamed audio is also downloaded from a remote web server, but the files are only temporarily stored while they are being played. The most popular format for streamed audio is Real Audio (.ra).

Streaming audio is a method of delivering an audio signal to your computer over the Internet. Streaming differs from downloading Internet audio in one important way - - instead of having to download a ".wav", ".au" or other type of file completely before being able to listen to it, you begin hearing the sound as the first portion arrives at your computer.

As the audio data arrives it is buffered for a few seconds and then playback begins. As the audio is playing, more data is constantly arriving (or streaming). As long as you continue receiving a constant stream of audio data, you should hear uninterrupted audio. Think of the buffer as a "open funnel" that is continually being topped off with more data. As long as there is data flow into the funnel, it will continue to pour out of the tube - - and be played through the computer. In other words, as long as there is data in the buffer you will continue to hear sound. Unfortunately the buffer "funnel" can empty due to congestion on the Internet which interrupts the receiving of data. But if you have a strong internet connection, streaming audio is generally not a problem.

Also with streaming there are no audio files left behind on your computer. The audio data is only there temporarily and then is discarded; whereas a downloaded audio file can be copied, stored, and played over and over again.

For information about downloading the plug-ins and player, check our arrowMultimedia Seeds: Tools, Drivers, and Plugins page.

questionRead the off-site resources: Streaming Audio from PC World, and MP3 - Frequently and Infrequently Asked Questions by Bill Lynn. Which way of accessing audio do you think is more useful to libraries, downloading or streaming? Why?

Using Remote Collections

girlRemote collections have many purposes. Some people are looking for a specific sound or speech. Others are just exploring options such as different forms of music. Although many people are seeking free materials, others are willing to buy materials or pay a subscription fee. Explore some of the ways people use these collections.

Sample. Many web visitors use the Internet as a way to search for new artists and explore a variety of musical genres. They use music websites to sample audio files and make purchasing decisions.

Purchase. A huge market has emerged for buying music direct from the Internet. Customers select the music and provide their credit card. Then, the files are downloaded directly to the customer's computer. Subscription services allow customers to listen to streamed music for a fee.

Share. Some people use the web as a place to access music without paying a fee. Radio stations, library, museums, non-profits, and music cooperatives pay for the rights to play music or share original works. Skim the following articles to provide background on this continuing copyright related issue:

Pirate. Sharing copyrighted materials without the permission of the author is considered theft. This is a highly controversial area because it involves issues related to ethics, law, and technology. For more information, check out arrowCopyright and Licensing page from Multimedia Seeds.

Copyright and Sound

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is the trade group representing the United States recording industry. RIAA members create, manufacture and/or distribute about 90% of all legitimate sound recordings produced and sold in the U.S. In recent years, RIAA has brought legal action against publishers of file-sharing software such as Kazaa, Napster, MP3.com, and others to strictly enforce the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (1988). Several of these lawsuits are still pending, and many file-sharing practices have been altered or curtailed.

In 1996, a set of Educational Multimedia Guidelines was finalized by the Consortium for College and University Media Centers (CCUMC). In September of the same year, the guidelines were adopted by the subcommittee on Courts and Intellectual Property, Committee of the Judiciary, U.S. House of Representatives. For music and sound recordings, the guidelines allow 10% or no more than 30 seconds of the total work to be reproduced, incorporated into a multimedia project. The CCUMC guidelines further stipulate that the basic melody or fundamental character of the work should not be changed. The guidelines further recommend limitations as far as use and time for the multimedia projects for both students and teachers.

Sound Exchange is a U.S. organization created to collect performance royalties for sound recording copyright owners and artists; collect the revenue stream created by 1995's Digital Performance Right in Sound Recordings Act (DPRA). The DPRA gave record labels and other sound recording copyright owners a second chance to collect performance royalties from their recordings. Sound Exchange is an independent nonprofit performance rights organization that currently represents over 1,000 record companies, their more than 3000 labels and thousands of artists united in receiving a fair price for the licensing of their music for digital transmissions.

The transmission rate for webcasting music is set by the Copyright Arbitration Panel (CARP) with input from the U.S. Librarian of Congress (2002).

Additional Information on Copyright

Obtaining the rights to use music and sound sometimes involves more than one permission; obtaining rights from the publisher / copyright holder for lyrics, the musical score, and the performer(s). For more ideas visit Licensing 101 from Sound Exchange and Obtaining Permissions: Music from Regent University Library.

All the regulations and restrictions can be daunting to students, librarians, and educators wanting to utilize published audio material. The portal site, Ourmedia has become a global community for housing and sharing media. That includes music and music videos. The Open Media Directory provides lots more help for locating legal music.

Issues on music copyright are an excellent topic for investigation, debate, and learning. Read Write Think has an excellent lesson unit (Grade 9-12) titled Copyright Infringement or Not? The Debate over Downloading Music.

Go to the following sections and read about different kinds of remote collections:

 

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